What happens if Liz Truss resigns today?
Prime Minister Liz Truss has had the worst start to her premiership than any other PM. And the last 48 hours in Westminster have been chaos.
There are rumours that the Liz Truss era is fast approaching its end, and many are plotting to oust her from No 10.
She has only been in the job since September 5.
In that time, the Queen died, Liz Truss crashed the economy, her mini-budget has been ripped up and replaced with policies that she campaigned against during the leadership race, she fired her chancellor and replaced him with a Rishi Sunak supporter, her home secretary resigned and offered up a scathing letter and there were reports of bullying from her cabinet at last night’s Commons vote.
Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng was fired after the mini-budget spooked the financial markets. Many argue that Truss should have gone with him as it was her financial vision as his.
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How does a Tory leadership election work?
According to the 1922 Committee, an incumbent Tory PM cannot face a confidence vote within their first year on the job. But there is speculation that this rule could be changed.
After that 12-month period, to trigger a contest vote, 15 per cent of Tory MPs would have to submit letters of no confidence to 1922 Committee chair, Sir Graham Brady. If at least 50 per cent of MPs then vote no-confidence in their leader, a leadership election begins.
Tory MPs who want to be in the race for the top job will then seek nominations from their colleagues. There will be a series of ballots which will see all the candidates whittled down to just two. The rank and file of the Conservative party will then choose the winner.
Boris Johnson won the general election in 2019 and although he was ousted and replaced with Truss there is no requirement for the Conservative party to call a general election.
Some MPs are understood to want to avoid putting the vote back to the ordinary members of the party. The Telegraph says some MPs want the parliamentary party to choose Truss’s successor, though others warn that this would require a complicated rule change.
This aligns with newspaper reports that say the Tories want to put Rishi Sunak and Penny Mordaunt in office on a “golden ticket” type deal.
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What happens if Liz Truss resigns today?
If Liz Truss resigns as Conservative leader and Prime Minister today, a leadership contest would begin.
Those wanting to get into No 10 would begin trying to get support for their campaign.
However, it is possible that the Tory parliamentary party could rally around a single candidate for the leadership. This would perhaps be seen as a better option as it will avoid time-wasting.
If Truss does not resign and attempts to cling on to power against the will of MPs and peers, the 1922 Committee could and would likely change the rules to allow an early challenge to her (changing the 12-month rule). This would likely see her removal from both leadership of the party and as prime minister.
Can we have a general election?
Labour and Liberal Democrats are amongst those calling for an early general election. But the government is not legally obliged to hold another general election before January 2025 – surely to the delight of Conservatives as the latest opinion polls suggest the Tories would lose most of their seats.
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Cliff Notes
- Scotland is currently battling its fourth wildfire this week, primarily in Galloway, with helicopters deployed to control the flames that have spread across multiple areas.
- The recent warm weather has led to a "severe" wildfire rating across parts of the UK, triggering warnings against barbecues in parks to prevent fire spread.
- The UK has reported 286 wildfires in 2023, significantly more than the same period last year, prompting calls for increased resources to manage the escalating risks posed by climate change.
Large wildfire in Scotland – after multiple blazes across UK this week | UK News
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Helicopters are being used to tackle Scotland’s fourth wildfire this week after others broke out in England amid warmer-than-usual temperatures.
The latest blaze was reported in Galloway at 11.50pm on Friday.
Police Scotland said fire services were still using helicopters to bring the flames under control on Saturday, which have now spread 1.5 miles across Merrick Hil, Ben Yellary, Glen Trool, and Loch Dee.
It is the fourth wildfire to sweep the country so far this week – with one stretching 500m at Gartur Moss in Port of Menteith, Stirling, on Wednesday.
Crews were also sent to extinguish blazes in Bonhill, West Dunbartonshire, and Kilpatrick Hills, East Dunbartonshire, earlier in the week.
They come amid uncharacteristically warm and dry conditions for the time of year, which triggered a “severe” wildfire rating for parts of the UK on Tuesday.
Friday was officially the warmest day of the year so far – with temperatures in the south of England reaching 23C (73.4F) – the highest since 21 September last year, according to the Met Office.
People have been warned not to have barbecues in parks as they risk fires spreading through open spaces.
London Fire Brigade’s assistant commissioner Paul McCourt warned earlier in the week: “The Met Office has issued an amber wildfire warning, covering London, and this will be in place for the rest of the week.
“As the weather warms up and we head towards Friday and the weekend, we would urge Londoners not to have barbecues in open spaces or on balconies, including disposable barbecues, to throw rubbish away, and to dispose of cigarettes carefully to avoid inadvertently starting a fire.”
In Dorset, Moors Valley Country Park was forced to close after multiple wildfires broke out there on Wednesday.
Separate incidents were then reported at Upton Heath, near Poole on Wednesday, and Canford Heath in the early hours of Thursday.
The former saw flames spread across 37 acres – but fire crews said they were both brought under control.
286 wildfires so far this year
The warm weather is set to continue next week, with above-average temperatures into next weekend, and the risk of wildfires still possible but reducing, according to the Met Office.
There have already been 286 wildfires reported in 2025 – 100 more than those recorded over the same period in 2022, which saw record-breaking temperatures and unprecedented numbers of fires.
The National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) has urged the government to increase resilience as wildfires are increasing with climate change.
Chairman Phil Garrigan said: “Responding to wildfires requires a lot of resource, and often over long periods of time, which puts pressure on other fire and rescue service activities.
“Rising resilience threats mean there is an increased demand on fire and rescue services and that has to be met with long-term and sustained investment. This is really crucial to ensuring we can continue to keep our communities safe.
“Wildfires are not a seasonal threat – they are becoming a persistent and growing risk to life, property, and the environment. We must adapt and invest now to ensure our services are equipped to meet this challenge.”
